One paragraph alone indicates the measured but up-to-date approach taken in mid-December by author Jack Ewing:

Faster than anyone expected, electric cars are becoming as economical and practical as cars with conventional engines. Prices for lithium-ion batteries are plummeting, while technical advances are increasing driving ranges and cutting recharging times.

He cites, among other factors, the need for cheaper battery cells, steady raw-material supplies, and more and higher-speed public charging infrastructure.

Tesla Model S at Supercharger site in Ventura, CA, with just one slot open [photo: David Noland]

Two pieces from Bloomberg approach the topic from different perspectives: One looks at the state of sales today, the other cites much cheaper batteries as the reason for future optimism.

That's the magic number at which long-range electric cars are expected to be cost-competitive with conventional gasoline vehicles of the same size and shape.

Those gasoline vehicles will be pricier, based on the complexity and cost of the technology they will require to meet increasingly stringent limits on tailpipe emissions of carbon dioxide and rising fuel-economy standards around the world.

It's still possible to find plenty of articles on electric cars that are just plain lousy.

Whether they cite long-debunked notions that electric cars are charged on coal, or will bring down the electric grid, or are based entirely on materials sourced from child labor working in slave conditions, there's a lot of nonsense yet to be debunked.

We read dozens of articles every day, and it's fair to say that in reputable media, we see cause for optimism.

More reporters better understand the nuances of the emerging industries, and their fluency with the technical details seems to be increasing.

And in an environment where the term "fake news" occurs with distressing frequency, we think that's cause for celebration.